


The Demigod Journal

by Takara_Phoenix



Series: Lover of Olympus [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Anal, Annabeth needs a break, Blofis/Jackson-family love, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Shoujo-ai, Shounen-ai, Slash, Thalia-Jason sibling moments, Threesome - M/M/M, femmeslash, insecure!Leo, lots of fluff, possessive!Stolls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-07
Updated: 2014-08-07
Packaged: 2018-02-12 04:23:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2095647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takara_Phoenix/pseuds/Takara_Phoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I like that Rick Riordan puts those little oneshot-collections between his series, so I did the same for my "Lover of Olympus"-series. Each story focuses on another side-pairing.</p><p>First story is about Piper and Annabeth. Piper needs to adjust to camp and has to deal with Drew, while Annabeth tries to comfort the Blofisses.</p><p>Second story focuses on Jason and Leo, how they cope with Hera's fake memories, how Leo builds the Argo II and Jason tries to reconnect with Thalia.</p><p>Third story tells how the Stolls get into Nico's pants, thanks to Persephone who really thinks her stepson needs a break from all the searching-for-Percy, visiting-the-Romans, keeping-secrets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Tale of the Brave Women

Title: The Demigod Journal – Hestia's Comfort

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; between Lost Hero and Son of Neptune in my 'Lover of Olympus'-verse, thus between Lost Lover and Champion of Venus

Disclaimer : All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shoujo-ai, fluff, shounen-ai, hetero

Main Pairing: Pipabeth

Side Pairings: Lou/Miranda, Jason/Leo, Travis/Nico, Paul/Sally, Chris/Clarisse, Grover/Juniper, Polympians (mentioned)

Percy Jackson Characters: Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Nico di Angelo, Travis Stoll, Leo Valdez, Jason Grace, Clarisse la Rue, Lou Ellen, Miranda Gardner, Juniper, Calypso, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Sally Jackson, Paul Blofis, Hestia

Summary: A oneshot-collection set between The Lost Hero/The Lost Lover and The Son of Neptune/The Champion of Venus, telling the stories of how Annabeth and Piper got together while Annabeth tried to comfort Sally and Piper had a rough time adjusting to camp and to Drew, how Jason and Leo coped with having fake memories of a relationship while Jason tried to mend his relationship with his sister and Leo did his best to build the Argo II with his siblings' help and last but not least how Connor and Travis seduced Nico, who kept himself busy traveling from one camp to the other and trying to search for their beloved son of Poseidon.

 

**The Demigod Journal**

_ Hestia's Comfort _

The Tale of the Brave Women

 

Annabeth sighed and squinted some, she was dead on her feet, but what she was doing was more important than sleeping. She was observing Piper and Leo. Percy would most likely call her a stalker for that, but she was only worried for them. Drew was giving Piper quite a hard time and Leo tended to overload himself with work (she was well aware that it was very hypocritical of her to say that, but she was still worried for the tinkerer). Though at least Jason seemed to be able to take care of Leo somehow, the blonde just needed to smirk at the son of Hephaestus and Leo was out of Bunker Nine, doing whatever the Roman wanted. Like a cute puppy dog. A little bit like the boys reacted whenever Percy batted his eyelashes at them.

Oh great, she can't even go five thoughts without Percy popping up in them! Groaning in frustration, she decided that it was time to get distracted by some friends. Straightening her back, she walked out of camp to where she knew she would find her friend.

“What if something happens to him?”

“Now you're really being overly dramatic. He lived through his search for Pan. Why should something happen to him on his search for our Disney princess?”

“Clarisse is right, Juni. I'm sure that Grover will be fine.”

Annabeth chuckled a bit amused as she entered the cave, finding a very distressed tree-nymph, a glaring redhead and an overly unimpressed brunette. Juniper was worried out of her mind for her boyfriend. For Percy too, of course, but even more so for Grover. What if the satyr came close to finding Percy and that foe that had managed to capture the most powerful demi-god in existence would not be pleased? Whoever it was, they were certainly strong enough to get rid of a satyr if he annoyed them. The thought made her stomach knot.

“Hey, girls”, smiled Annabeth strained as she sat down in front of Juniper.

“Enough pining for today, Chase? Yes?”, grunted Clarisse. “I think I speak for all of camp if I say; Just go to her and end this odd eggshell-dance the two of you are performing there.”

“I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about”, hissed the blonde and blushed. “Anyway, what were you guys talking about?”

“Oh, I would appreciate it if we would rather talk about your love-life instead of the possibilities of something happening to... oh good nature”, sighed the nymph and sobbed slightly.

It was hard to say no when faced with a worried girlfriend of a close friend. “Okay, fine... But can we not talk inside a depressing cave, please?”

The redhead stuck her tongue out at her friend and the four females left the oracle's cave to walk through the forest together.

“Okay, so... Spill it. I still remember how angry you've been at Percy for breaking up”, grinned Rachel with sparkling eyes, edging closer to the blonde.

“Angry?”, snorted Clarisse and rolled her eyes. “She's been a pouty brat for weeks.”

“Because I've been crushing on him for ages before we came together”, sighed Annabeth, combing her fingers through her hair. “And he was my best friend. It was hard to settle with the fact that he broke up with me and confessed to be gay...”

“And now you're facing sudden homosexuality yourself?”, chuckled Clarisse, nudging her.

“It's not... sudden”, shrugged Annabeth awkwardly and blushed. “I mean, I have been kind of crushing on Thalia before we came to camp. I guess I just... never felt comfortable with admitting it. When we came to camp, all I saw were happy straight couples for the longest of times. With everyone slowly falling in love – Beckendorf and Silena, you and Grover, or you and Chris – I had been feeling a bit uncomfortable... And Percy was there and so incredibly cute. It... was easier for me to project some kind of feelings onto him to feel normal, to fit in... But when he broke up with me to stand to his true colors, it hurt me even more because I wasn't as brave...”

“But now you're braver?”, asked Juniper curiously.

“Well, maybe”, shrugged the daughter of Athena as they entered camp grounds again. “I mean, it had helped seeing Jake and Will so happy together. And then even Lou and Miranda.”

She tilted her head toward where the daughter of Hecate and the daughter of Demeter sat. The other girls frowned at the unhappy look on Miranda's face. Juniper, who had always gotten along very well with the Gardner-sisters, tentatively touched Miranda's shoulder to gain her attention. The depressed brunette looked up at the four others with large, dark eyes.

“What's bothering you?”, asked the nymph worried.

“Randa is worried about her big sister”, sighed Lou next to her girlfriend, one arm wrapped around Miranda's shoulders. “And she's uncomfortable being cabin leader.”

“And annoyed because my girlfriend keeps teasing me and answering for me”, grunted the daughter of Demeter with one raised eyebrow, leaning her head against Lou's shoulder.

“You're doing a good job”, smiled Annabeth, trying to cheer the younger girl up some. “I'm sure Katie will be quite proud of you once she returns from her quest.”

“Say, how come you didn't go with Connor and Malcolm?”, asked Lou with a curious frown.

“Well...”, drawled the daughter of Athena and shrugged slightly. “I... want to over see everything from here. Mr. D asked me to keep an eye on camp and the search. So that's what I'm doing. I'm keeping up with Grover's search, Tyson's search, Nico's search, the hunters' progress and Connor's quest for Percy. Someone has to structure this, otherwise they're just aimlessly running around the US, maybe looking one place five times and somewhere else not even once.”

“And it has nothing to do with a certain daughter of Aphrodite?”, accused Lou mischievously.

“I have no idea what you are talking about, Ellen”, grunted Annabeth, blushing a little bit. “As the temporary leader of camp, I have to watch out for the newbies. Especially when you consider how Piper, Leo and Jason came here. So of course I'm watching out for Piper.”

“Just a tiny bit more than you watch out for Leo and Jason”, giggled Miranda. “Oh, stop denying it, Annabeth. We know. And as like the only lesbians in all of camp, you can trust us.”

Annabeth smiled slightly and shrugged, leaving it at that for now. She may now feel more comfortable about herself, but certainly not enough to openly say things like 'I'm a lesbian and in love with the most beautiful daughter of Aphrodite ever'.

“Anyway, we're leaving you two alone again. It seems Annabeth's misery lifted your mood, mini Gardner”, smirked Clarisse, pulling her blonde friend along. “See you later.”

The couple waved after them, laughing to themselves a bit. While Clarisse, Annabeth, Rachel and Juniper continued their little walk through camp. It was rather busy, most were either getting everything ready for their own Christmas celebrations or packing for a short visit in the mortal world. Annabeth heaved a sigh. Her initial Christmas plans had been dumped too.

“Say, what are you guys doing for Christmas now?”, wanted the daughter of Athena to know.

“You mean now that the overly awesome gods and demi-gods party a la Jackson is being canceled due to multiple schizophrenia on Olympus and a certain host missing?”, grunted the brunette next to her with a frown. “Well, Chris and I had been thinking about maybe visiting my grandparents in Paris. They had been pestering me to meet Chris for months now.”

“Thinking or actually doing it?”, asked Rachel curiously.

“We booked a flight for later today and will be landing in time for Christmas dinner”, shrugged the daughter of Ares. “I don't really know why Chris is so eager for this though.”

“Because he's meeting your family”, grinned Juniper delighted. “That's special!”

“It's annoying, that's what it is”, muttered Clarisse and blushed the faintest bit. “What about you?”

“Well...”, sighed Juniper, her mood deflating again right away. “I had planned to spend the day with Grover, but now, I will probably spend it sulking with Willow and Ash.”

“Nymphs”, chuckled Rachel and shook her head. “No need to sulk. He's certainly fine. Besides, if anything you can spend it feeling bad. My parents insist that I am at home tonight for their annual Christmas ball, playing the part of the obedient, well-behaved daughter.”

“Sounds like tons of fun”, snickered Clarisse. “What about you, Annabeth?”

“I'll still go and visit Sally. Someone has to eat the eight turkeys she bought”, chuckled Annabeth darkly. “Besides, she can use the company. Every day that passes without word from the gods only depresses her more. She's at her end.”

“Then how about you take someone else with you tonight?”, smiled Juniper.

“Huh? What do you-”, started Annabeth confused before she found herself faced with the new trio.

She was face to face with Piper, staring wide-eyed into those multi-colored eyes. On either side of the native American stood one of her boys. The furrowed brows of Piper and the way the Latino was biting his lips told Annabeth enough. It seemed the daughter of Aphrodite was once again busy doing what she did most of the time. Trying to help her two best friends cope with their faked-memories-relationship. Which proved to be hard with such an insecure boy like Leo and such a stoic, stuck-up like Jason. Annabeth blinked a couple of times and turned, just to find the other three girls gone. Wonderful. What had she done to deserve that?

“Uh, is everything alright, Annabeth?”, asked Piper curiously. “You look a little... lost?”

Eight turkeys. Christmas. Two boys with love-trouble and the girl she was crushing on. She knew exactly what Percy would do now and what their friends wanted her to do now.

The Latino shifted awkwardly. “Well, I'll be... going. Jake and Nyssa are waiting for me.”

“Yes, I should be going too”, nodded the son of Jupiter.

Both boys left into different directions, leaving Piper to heave a sigh. Annabeth frowned.

“Are you alright, Piper?”, asked the daughter of Athena. “Is Drew giving you a hard time?”

“For once, it's actually not Drew”, chuckled the native American darkly, starting to slowly walk with Annabeth at her side. “She's laying back, for now. But I don't trust the peace. No, I'm more concerned about Leo and Jason... I know Leo is madly in love with Jason. Mostly probably because of those fake memories of a happy relationship. But also the quest. They got closer during our quest. Trusting others with your life brings you closer. I mean, my friendship with Jason had been faked too, but I now trust him with my life. The problem is that Jason is... huh, too Roman for this, I guess. He's not good with being open about feelings and stuff. And he's having a rough time at the moment too, I mean he's away from his friends and everything he knows and now he's also faced with a big sister he never really knew and he still didn't get to talk to her properly... I guess a fake relationship is not very high on his list of priorities at the moment...”

“Perhaps”, nodded the blonde thoughtful. “Or is there something else? What have you been talking about before I interrupted you guys?”

“Leo is jealous because Jason saw this photo of his sister with you, a satyr and Percy Jackson and he had been talking about Percy a lot now”, sighed Piper and bit her lips. “He had mentioned how beautiful Percy is once or twice. I don't think he meant to hurt Leo, but he did. Leo is so insecure about himself all the time...”

“Or maybe they just need a little push”, hummed Annabeth as they reached the lake. “Camp is big, they can hide from each other without many difficulties. I think they try to avoid talking about it because they both fear the other's reaction.”

“Suppose you're right”, nodded Piper and sat down at the shore, staring out at the lake. “But I don't know what to do, I mean this whole being a daughter of love is still so new...”

“Then how about you take an advice from someone who has seen many couples get together?”, grinned Annabeth, falling down right next to the other girl. “I may have an idea...”

“I'm listening”, nodded Piper curiously, tilting her head.

“First I need to know if you have plans for tonight”, grinned Annabeth.

“I don't. I mean, I would have loved to go to my dad for Christmas, but he has to work, he has left for Europe two days ago and won't be around for Christmas”, sighed Piper with a frown.

“Then how about you, Jason and Leo come with me?”, smiled the daughter of Athena.

“With you?”, blinked the daughter of Aphrodite surprised. “You mean to your family?”

“No”, replied the blonde, shaking her head amused. “I'm... not very close to my father and his new family. No, I'm spending Christmas with my second family.” At the confused look on Piper's face, she had to chuckle a bit. “Percy's family, his mother and stepfather.”

“Uh... but they don't even know us? And don't they have enough on their minds at the moment, with their son missing and all?”, asked Piper in a small voice.

“She already bought eight turkeys for a big Christmas party and I doubt we'll manage to eat them all on our own”, smiled Annabeth encouragingly. “Besides, I'm sure she wants to meet you. The three of you had been assigned to help finding Percy, after all. Which makes you part of her family. Everyone caring for her son is part of Sally Jackson's responsibility. Especially if they don't have parents like Leo and Jason do. Don't worry, you will like it. It's very homey and all.”

“Well, I... think I would like to come along”, nodded Piper with a small smile.

“Good”, grinned Annabeth. “I'll be leaving in half an hour. I'll give you the coordinates and you come around six with Leo and Jason, okay? It'll be good for them to get out of camp and have a bit more forced privacy to talk.”

Piper smiled and nodded in agreement.

 

/break\

 

“So, who did you invite?”, asked Sally curiously, finishing the salad.

Annabeth, who was setting the table in the dining room, turned her head toward the kitchen. “Piper, Jason and Leo. They're the others that got assigned to rescue Percy for the gods. Jason is Zeus' son, well, his Roman son. He is the one that got exchanged for Percy. He had been brought to us with fake memories of being friends with Piper and being together with Leo. So now Piper tries to mend the relationship between her two friends because she's a daughter of Aphrodite. And Leo is the son of Hephaestus with special fire abilities. Oh, and it seems Jason is quite intrigued by Percy's looks, had seen him on a photo. Which causes more trouble between Leo and Jason.”

“My, my, you young people and your love troubles”, sighed Sally amused and shook her head.

“How come everyone is falling for our son?”, grunted Paul a bit annoyed.

“I think it's something Lady Aphrodite did, like some kind of blessing, I don't know”, mused Annabeth with a curious frown. “But we'll probably only learn this once she is willing to reveal it. And once Percy is safely back with us again.”

“Could you please stop frowning about this. It's Christmas and we are to celebrate. Besides, Rachel had called me earlier and told me to keep an eye on you and Piper. She said something interesting is going on there. Care to share, Annabeth?”, asked another curious voice.

A girl with long caramel curls entered, carrying the last missing pieces to the dining table. Annabeth blushed and averted her eyes as the two mortals turned to look at her curiously.

“Is what Calypso says right?”, asked Sally with a small smile. “Are you truly in love?”

“You could have just stayed silent, Cally”, sighed Annabeth and bit her lips.

“I'm sorry”, laughed Calypso and shook her head. “I've spend too much time on my own on that island, all this socializing and gossiping is way too intriguing to ignore.”

Smiling apologetically, the daughter of Atlas scratched the back of her head. Annabeth sighed and stuck her tongue out at the girl. It had only been two days now that Calypso had been freed from Ogygia. At first they had suggested that she should stay at camp, but being the daughter of a titan she did not feel all too comfortable being surrounded by all the demi-gods. And also being surrounded by so many people to begin with. She wasn't used to being with other people like that. After Sally had learned that the gods had finally freed the girl her son had been talking about so much and with so much fondness, it was only logical for her to offer the 'poor child' a place to stay. They planned to renovate the study and turn it into an own room for Calypso, but the girl was for now staying in Percy's room. It was still very new and sudden, after all. Annabeth had been quite curious about meeting her in person. Since Annabeth had spend half her time skypeing with the Blofis-household, she also got to know Calypso a bit better.

“Okay, so yeah, I have been inviting Piper to have a bit more of a homey atmosphere to be with her”, confessed the daughter of Athena with a very bright blush. “I hope you're not angry...”

“By no means”, smiled Sally softly, resting a hand on her shoulder. “I'm glad you finally found someone. I had been very worried when you and Percy hadn't been talking after your breakup.”

Annabeth grinned slightly. “I'm sure you'll like her. And Leo and Jason.”

The doorbell interrupted any further conversation. “I'll go and get it! Need to see that girl!”

“What? No! Cally, wait!”, called Annabeth after her wide-eyed.

Calypso giggled and ran up to open the door. Just as she reached the door and opened it, Annabeth caught up with her, nearly running into the brunette girl. The three other guests blinked surprised at that, making Annabeth blush some more.

“Uh, hey, guys. I'm glad you could make it”, smiled Annabeth and straightened some.

The trio blinked wide eyed and nodded. Calypso laughed amused at that, ushering them inside.

“It's nice to meet you. I've already heard a lot about you from Annabeth”, smiled the titan's daughter. “It seems I have to thank you for my freedom. I'm Calypso.”

“Oh! Hi. Nice to meet you”, grinned the Latino broadly. “I'm Leo Valdez. That's Jason and Piper.”

“Hello”, greeted someone else.

The trio turned to face the two adults, who just finished setting the table. Annabeth could tell that the tree were feeling a little awkward, celebrating Christmas at someone else's house. Especially so someone they had never met. But with Jason being a Roman, Leo being an orphan and Piper's father working so much, she was sure that they could use some Jackson-family-feeling.

“Hello, sir, ma'am, thank you for having us”, greeted Jason and nodded politely.

“Please, call me Sally. And this is my husband Paul”, smiled the mother of Percy softly. “I already heard much about the three of you. Annabeth had told me that you're having a bit of a hard time settling in. And as the honorary mother of them all, as Annabeth and Rachel had lovingly dubbed me, I see it as my duty to make you three feel more comfortable. Now come and sit.”

“Though we will have to wait for the last ones”, grunted Paul a bit displeased. “That this son of Hades can never be on time for anything! It's a miracle Percy can put up with that brat!”

“I feel the love, thanks Paul.”

The five teenagers and the two adults turned to face the last two missing members of their dinner. A grumpy looking son of Hades and a mischievously grinning trickster, who had both his arms wrapped around the smaller demi-god. Annabeth chuckles as she noticed the faint blush on Nico's cheeks. She wouldn't have thought that the demi-god lovers of Percy would fall for each other too. But then again, they all had the genes of their parents. And if there is one thing the Greek and Roman gods are well known for, it's their open minds when it comes to sexuality and their stand toward monogamy. She would wish for Nico to have someone else too. Percy was always so busy, it would be wonderful if he had someone to rely on too.

“It's not my fault Lord Hades can't raise you properly”, huffed the mortal man. “I'm hungry, so please take a seat so we can start, boys. Hurry up.”

“I'm not quite sure what I'm doing here anyway”, muttered the son of Hades and took the seat next to Annabeth, with Travis hot on his heels to take the empty seat next to the Ghost Prince.

“You need rest, Nico”, smiled Sally strained. “I know how worried you are for Percy, but if you keep searching until you collapse, then it's futile too. So enjoy our company, will you?”

“Of course, Sally”, nodded the Italian.

Annabeth noted how Nico made a habit of always staying out of sight for Jason. Her guts were telling her that something was off, but her mind was too full with other things at the moment to contemplate the odd behavior of his friend. For now, she deemed it a simple feeling of being uncomfortable around a Roman, even more so since Jason was another child of one of the Big Three. Her attention got drawn to Paul as the mortal coughed slightly.

“I'm glad we're gathered here tonight, even though... this night had been planned differently”, said the man as he started to cut the first turkey. “I still hope this Christmas will be one to be remembered. At least so we can tell Percy about what he missed.”

The others laughed a bit at that. They started eating, first in a little awkward silence, then with conversation, the trio telling about their quest to safe Hera, Calypso talking about her island. And, of course, trading stories of Percy, until even Leo, Jason and Piper felt as if they knew him.

 

/break\

 

Three hours later had everyone scattered around the the house, three of the eight turkeys eaten and everyone still chewing little snacks of it while drinking mulled wine. Much mulled wine. Sally and Paul were talking to Nico and Travis, catching up with the boys in person finally. While Leo and Jason sat in the corner where a mistletoe was hanging. They had not separated in like half an hour.

“I can't believe they can't stop touching”, giggled Piper amused, nibbling her wine.

“Boys that age”, grinned Calypso. “They're always the same. Had been like that in my time too.”

“I told you they just need a little change of scenery and a little push”, smiled Annabeth softly. “Being constantly surrounded by Leo's siblings and everything wasn't really helping them with settling their feelings. But a mistletoe and some kissing does the magic.”

“I'm so glad they're finally at least not looking around awkwardly, not sure what to do”, sighed the daughter of Aphrodite contently, resting her head against Annabeth's shoulder.

“Well, girls. I'll be looking for desserts. How about you wait at the hearth?”, grinned Calypso.

She hastily stood and left the living room. Annabeth frowned after her and stood too. The hearth sounded good. They had been outside to avoid all the happy couples for a little while. Not that Travis and Nico were a proper couple. But...

“Say, Travis and Nico...? I mean, I thought they're both with Percy”, whispered Piper as they entered and passed the two boys and the two adults on their way.

“Soon”, grinned the daughter of Athena amused. “I think Nico still needs some time, but...”

The way Travis kept subtly touching Nico and more so the way the Ghost Prince leaned more into the touch the more wine he drank. Annabeth grinned mischievously. She walked over to Percy's favorite spot, the blue-dyed fluffy pelt in front of the fireplace. Sitting down comfortably, she motioned for her friend to sit down too. Piper cautiously cuddled closer to Annabeth, reluctantly wrapping one arm around the blonde's waist, as if she waited for Annabeth's protest. But instead, the daughter of Athena leaned against the native American, sighing contently.

“Say, you said you're not very close to your family... uh, I mean, if you don't mind me asking...”

“It's not a big deal. I mean, I love my dad and I even get along with my stepmother quite well by now, but when I was a child...” Annabeth interrupted herself with a sigh. “Well, she was angry because I never accepted her as my mother. They have two sons. My half-brothers. But I don't know them all that well. I ran away when I was seven years old. That was when I first met Jason's sister.”

“Seven?”, blinked Piper surprised. “And you've been all on your own?”

“Not very long. I soon met two friends. Thalia and Luke”, smiled Annabeth sadly. “We traveled together before we reached camp. I've spend many years at camp, without contact to my family. Until I met Percy. He... values family so much, he made me reconsider my relationship with my family and made me give them a second chance. It didn't go as well as I could have hoped for, I'm better off as a year rounder at camp. I don't want to endanger them, my little brothers are too young to be pulled into this mess because of me and I don't want to anger my stepmother because of that.”

“You and Percy... you're really close, huh”, noted Piper a bit jealous.

“He's... I didn't like him at first, because of our parents' rivalry. But then we had a quest together – to retrieve the master bolt of Zeus. We bonded over the quest, me, Percy and Grover. Much like you did with Jason and Leo. And since then we had many quests together and a war.” She smiled softly. “Yes, we are very close. He's my little brother and I need to protect him. I need to find him.”

“Oh, are you at that topic again?”, interrupted the chiding voice of Calypso.

The caramel-haired girl handed them each a goblet full of vanilla ice and hot raspberries. Annabeth smiled at her apologetically. It was hard to keep a conversation away from Percy these days.

“Oh!”, yelped Calypso delighted, pointing at the fireplace in front of them. “You have to kiss!”

Annabeth and Piper stared at the mistletoe hanging above the fireplace and then turned to look at each other wide-eyed. Annabeth blushed the brightest pink possible, her face darkening even more with every inch the daughter of Aphrodite neared her. Piper put her hand reluctantly at the back of Annabeth's neck and pulled her closer, staring into the blonde's eyes to see if there was any sign of doubt. The daughter of Athena breathed deep and leaned in, placing her lips on Piper's.

“I really like you”, mumbled Piper against Annabeth's lips as they parted. “I mean _really_.”

“I... uh... like you too”, grinned Annabeth lopsided. “You're so... carefree and concerned for your friends and different from other children of Aphrodite and so beautiful and clever and-”

The rambling blonde got interrupted by soft lips again, Piper laughing while they kissed. “You're incredibly cute when you ramble. And when you talk about architecture. Or quests. And clever and beautiful too. And a leader. I really want to get to know you better and... well... uh...”

“I would like to... uh... be with you too”, smiled the flustered daughter of Athena and pecked Piper's lips once more. “How about we... stay here while the others eat dessert and talk some more?”

“Yes”, grinned the native American highly motivated and got a bit comfortable. “I want to hear more about that quest for the master bolt. And any other heroic story.”

Annabeth returned that grin and laid down too, cuddling up to the daughter of Aphrodite. The two girls stared at the burning fire in front of them, hearing the faint chattering of the others behind them. The daughter of Athena sighed contently, enjoying the radiant body heat of her... girlfriend. Oh yes, she enjoyed that thought even more. A happy smile, the first ever since Percy had disappeared, spread over her lips as she started the tale of the Master Bolt.

 

/break\

 

Hestia giggled delighted as she watched through her hearth's fire how the two girls snuggled up together. She hated staying at Olympus at the moment. All the moping gods, all the sadness. And now that Percy was gone, the goddesses didn't have much to do either. It was astonishing how much time they had spend with the son of Poseidon and with setting said Sea Prince up with the gods.

So now they were looking for... other things to do. Other pairings to ship, as Aphrodite had phrased it. And Hestia had always liked Athena's girl. So putting a mistletoe up to make them finally act was not that hard of a task. The feelings were there, after all. Hestia grinned amused. Yes, this was a merry Christmas indeed. It would only be merrier if Percy would have been there to witness his best friend's happiness and spend the holiday with his family, friends and lovers...

 

_~*~ The End ~*~_


	2. Two Sides of the Same Coin

Title: The Demigod Journal – Artemis' Counseling

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; between Lost Hero and Son of Neptune in my 'Lover of Olympus'-verse, thus between Lost Lover and Champion of Venus

PJatO Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, of course. They are all copyright by the old Greeks. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, fluff, h/c, shoujo-ai

Main Pairing: Jaseo

Side Pairings: Jake/Will, Piper/Annabeth, Polympians (mentioned)

Percy Jackson Characters: Leo Valdez, Jason Grace, Will Solace, Jake Mason, Nyssa Black, Thalia Grace, Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Artemis

Summary: A oneshot-collection set between The Lost Hero/The Lost Lover and The Son of Neptune/The Champion of Venus, telling the stories of how Annabeth and Piper got together while Annabeth tried to comfort Sally and Piper had a rough time adjusting to camp and to Drew, how Jason and Leo coped with having fake memories of a relationship while Jason tried to mend his relationship with his sister and Leo did his best to build the Argo II with his siblings' help and last but not least how Connor and Travis seduced Nico, who kept himself busy traveling from one camp to the other and trying to search for their beloved son of Poseidon.

 

**The Demigod Journal**

_ Artemis' Counseling _

Two Sides of the Same Coin

 

A heavy sigh could be heard throughout the room. About the tenth within the last quarter hour. The blonde boy laying on one of the beds growled and turned with a glare, his fingers still tangled in the hair of his very half-naked and hickey-covered boyfriend.

“Okay, seriously. Stop this moping and pouting or I will kick your ass”, growled the son of Apollo, shifting a bit to get a better glare. “You're ruining my making-out-with-my-boyfriend-mood.”

“Leave him be”, laughed his boyfriend, burying his nose in Will's hair. “Leo's having love-trouble.”

The sighing Latino wrapped his arms around his knees and stared at the happy couple with the best wounded puppy eyes he could muster. So convincing in fact that even Will's glare died down. The blonde heaved a sigh of his own and stood to walk over to the Latino, resting a hand in a supporting manner on the smaller and younger teen's shoulder.

“Okay. I'm only going to ask once because I'm horny and demand my making-out-scession with Jake, so you better don't squirm around”, declared Will sternly. “What's up, Leo?”

He punctuated every word especially, his sky-blue eyes staring intensely at the son of Hephaestus. Leo blushed slightly and tried to shrug it off, but the temptation was too great to deny. He really wanted to talk about it, but he was feeling way too awkward to dare to.

“Okay, so my kind-of-relationship with Jason had been great since that Christmas Eve at the Blofis' place...”, started the son of Hephaestus in a soft voice.

“That kind of doesn't sound like trouble”, noted the blonde with a warning eyebrow raised.

“I'm getting there!”, exclaimed Leo hastily. “Okay, so... It's going pretty well, but still... Now that we get along better with Annabeth – what with her dating Piper and all – he... It's stupid, okay? It's just that... Whenever we are in the Zeus cabin, I catch him staring at that stupid photo of his sister, Annabeth and Percy Jackson... And whenever Annabeth is talking to Rachel or someone else about Percy, Jason would listen in intensely too...”

“Okay...”, nodded the son of Apollo confused. “I'm still not getting it.”

“This Percy, I haven't met him, but I've heard enough stories about him now... The gods? Nico, Travis and Connor? Do I have to spill it for you!”, huffed Leo with a pout. “He has all those guys wrapped around his little finger and even those that are not in love with him seem to still love him! I know you two are overly worried for him too, so is like everyone else! And I've seen the pictures too, Percy _is_ drop-dead gorgeous!”

“Still confused”, voiced Will with furrowed eyebrows.

“Once we find Percy, Jason is going to leave me to be with him”, blurted Leo out, sobbing slightly.

“Oh”, nodded the blonde, finally understanding, then laughing. “You're ridiculous, Valdez.”

“Thanks...”, huffed the son of Hephaestus and curled together again. “I know I've been ridiculous for thinking that someone like the superb son of Jupiter would be with someone like me...”

The next thing he knew was a dull pain in the back of his head. Wincing slightly, he lifted his head to look confused at Will. The blonde was back to glaring irritated.

“You _are_ being ridiculous, as in right now”, repeated the son of Apollo. “Jason is a cold, isolated Roman. The only people he sticks around are you, Piper and Annabeth. And Annabeth is more like forced due to Piper. And even though he likes the girls well enough, the only one who gets to melt his heart are _you_. He's even blushing and sometimes even stuttering when he's around you. Which is like totally uncharacteristic for the stoic Roman. So don't you dare think crap like that he'll leave you or that he doesn't care enough about you.”

Leo bit his lips and averted his eyes, trying not to look at the blonde who was trying to force him into not feeling bad anymore. The sound of the door was only faint and in the background.

 

/break\

 

Jake was seething. If he would be the fire-bender in the family, he would have already set half the camp on fire. Storming through camp, his eyes scanned the scattered little groups of demi-gods for a certain face. But before he had a chance to find who he was looking for, he was discovered by three prying females. One of them happened to be his sister. Nyssa frowned confused, tugging the couple she had been talking with along, Piper on one hand and Annabeth on the other.

“Nys! What's going on?”, yelped the daughter of Aphrodite, struggling in her grip.

“That's what I want to find out from my brother”, huffed Nyssa as the three girls reached him.

Jake came to a sudden halt as he was faced with the three females. Ever since Leo had come into his life, ever since Percy had been taken from their camp, those three had become his equivalent to the three furies. It kind of scared him that Nyssa and Piper were getting along so well and what with Annabeth now finally dating the native American, it was nearly impossible to not encounter them as a trio. Right now, his favorite girl at camp was glaring at him heatedly.

“What's with the stomping and growling, Jake?”, demanded Nyssa to know.

Jake contemplated his options for a second before nodding determined and grabbing his sister's hand. “You'll have to come with me for that. And you two, don't worry, just go and suck faces.”

“Don't be rude, Mason, or I'll cut your Will-time!”, warned Annabeth with a vibrant blush.

“Oh, leave them be”, grinned Piper and winked. “I kind of like his idea though.”

Rolling his eyes, he kept walking with his sister. Even though Nyssa was glaring at him, she still trusted her brother to not waste her time. The two entered the woods together.

 

/break\

 

Jason sighed deeply and slowly, agonizingly slow so. His companion frowned annoyed.

“Okay, this is like our third meeting now and you're getting more and more pouty with each. Please tell me it's not because of me because that would make me feel awkward.”

“Sorry, sis”, sighed the blonde and ran a hand through his hair. “Just a lot on my mind...”

Firebug-trouble?”, snickered Thalia and tilted her head intrigued.

Due to the huntresses' excessive search for Percy, Thalia occasionally crashed by at Camp Half-Blood to check in with Annabeth on how the others' search is processing. Those crashes were quite convenient, because Thalia got to use them as an excuse to catch up with her little brother. During the little time he now got to spend with Jason, he got to diagnose the three different kinds of sighs the blonde could produce. One was the homesick kind of, which he mostly got when remembering more of his past and missing especially his best friend Reyna very much or worrying for his friends at Camp Jupiter because of the augur. The second kind of sigh was the kind of annoyed sigh that represented problems with the Greeks. Sometimes because of him being Roman and them having some little prejudices or sometimes because campers like Drew were bullying the few people Jason was close to. But the most prominent kind of sigh was the 'firebug-trouble-sigh'. It meant that some kind of trouble had arose between Jason and Leo, either because of their fake-relationship-past or because of how they were adjusting to camp.

“I think Leo is angry at me”, muttered Jason, running his fingers through his hair and clawing at his skull in silent frustration. “I think he just... doesn't get me. I mean, New Rome is so different from the Greek ways. I don't mean to drive him away, but I feel as if I do...”

“I wish I could help you with those boy troubles of yours”, chuckled Thalia with a slightly soft and comforting smile. “Have you told your Aphrodite-friend about this?”

“How can I?”, huffed Jason and lifted his head to glare at his sister. “Her and Leo are best friends. Longer than they knew me. They had been friends _for real_ before Hera dropped me off. I can't burden her with my relationship-problems, it would put her into a really dumb situation...”

“Mh”, nodded Thalia in understanding, frowning slightly. “And Annabeth? Believe me, if someone can help you with love-trouble, it'll be her. What with her past with Percy and how close she is to him, she knows of all of _his_ love-trouble. Believe me, she's a pro by now.”

“We're not close”, dejected the son of Jupiter, shaking his head. “I mean, she's... alright and she makes Piper happy, but I feel as if she is glaring daggers at me whenever I turn my back on her. And I don't really blame her. I mean, I've been brought here to replace her best friend.”

“She knows it's not your fault”, huffed Thalia and bumped against his shoulder.

“I know. But still...”, drawled Jason a bit desperately. “Even with that, I can't go up to her and be all 'Hey, I have those problems with my boyfriend, mind helping me?'...”

“I think the only thing stopping you from doing that, is your stupid Roman pride”, snorted Thalia.

The Roman shrugged and turned away a bit. “I miss Rey...  _She_ would know what to do...”

“Well, I know what to do too. And I already told you that like the last time we met”, noted his sister.

“And I told you that I can't just talk to Leo about it!”, hissed Jason back with a glare.

“Again: Stupid Roman pride”, snickered the daughter of Zeus and rolled her eyes, though then she tensed a bit and turned to look somewhere. “Ah. Wouldn't want to get in the middle of _that_. I'll go and talk to Annabeth a bit before leaving. See you next week, Jay.”

She waved and disappeared in a haste, leaving her brother quite confused. Until two very angry and seething children of Hephaestus emerged from the direction his sister had been looking at earlier. Damn her and her hunter-instincts! Now he was feeling like a poor little rabbit facing two hungry wolves. Not a feeling he was familiar or comfortable with. But the only reason those two were waking such feelings within him was probably because they were his boyfriend's older siblings.

“You will pay”, growled Jake with a dark glare.

“I'm going to severe your head. Or your balls. Your choice”, warned Nyssa with a scowl.

“What? Why? I didn't do anything!”, yelped Jason – _not_ in a high-pitched voice, certainly!

“That's the problem, Roman”, hissed the daughter of Hephaestus.

The two edged closer until they had him backed against a tree trunk. Today was not his day. He should have just stayed in bed. Gritting his teeth, he looked left and right for an escape rout.

“You're supposed to make Leo happy, not miserable!”, growled Jake, shaking his fists threateningly.

“Miserable?”, repeated Jason stunned. “What?”

“He's sitting in our cabin sulking”, replied Nyssa darkly.

“You, my _friend_ ”, it sounded more like a threat than an endearment. “Are talking or thinking way too much about Perce. Believe me, I know the boy and he _is_ quite enchanting. But you have never even met him! And now you managed to make Leo scared that you're going to just drop him once you get to meet Percy in person. But believe me, if you dare doing that, _we_ are going to set you on fire and it will not be pleasant for you, Grace.”

Jason could only nod absentmindedly. He was too busy trying to wrap his head around what had just been said. He could see Nyssa's lips moving and knew the siblings were still talking to him – threatening him, really – but his mind was stuck on Leo. Without much hesitation, he bolted off, leaving the two tinkerers to scream after him outraged. But he didn't hear a word spoken to him, he was too busy running toward the Hephaestus cabin. Bursting in, he was faced with a bored looking, slightly irritated Will, who lifted his gaze off his copy of  _Wicked_ to glare at him.

“You should stay far away from me, or I will bite your head off”, warned the son of Apollo. “Thanks to you being a jerk-boyfriend, my boyfriend left me hanging with blue balls.”

“Get out”, ordered Jason, zooming on on Leo. “Go and chase your boyfriend, Will.”

The Greek blonde frowned curiously and looked from Jason over at Leo and back again. Then he shrugged and stood to leave the cabin. Though he elbowed Jason on his way out.

“Make him cry and I'll tell my boyfriend how to inflict the most possible pain before killing you.”

The son of Jupiter nodded slowly and waited until the door closed behind Will. Then he proceeded to walk up to his boyfriend's bed and just simply fall down in front of Leo, startling the Latino. Jason glared and pinned the smaller demi-god to the bed. Leo nearly looked afraid for a moment, but then Jason pressed his lips firmly against the Latino's.

“I'm sorry”, whispered the blonde as they broke.

“Say what now?”, blinked the son of Hephaestus confused.

“I said I'm sorry. Look, I thought we were having some little conflicts. But I didn't think you'd be afraid that I'll leave you!”, exclaimed Jason a bit winded and annoyed. “I mean, how can you think that? Sure, we started out kind of awkward with fake memories and continued even more awkward, but that doesn't mean that I don't love you, you idiot! You're the most adorable and amusing person I've ever met in my whole life, you make me feel all those stupid things Lupa taught me would make me weak, but they're too special and wonderful to even think about giving them up!”

“But Percy-”, started Leo with wide, unsure eyes.

“Is hot, yes. I'm not denying that. But you are _burning_ ”, smirked Jason with a small wink. “But seriously, I just... he's beautiful and I'm intrigued, because of all the stories we've already heard and all the pictures we've seen. And I'm especially worried about Percy, because I am lucky to be welcomed by you Greeks, but the Romans are not as welcoming and I would be blaming myself if the greatest hero of this camp would be harmed by my family. I can't get that thought out of my head. I still hope we may find him before he reaches camp because I just _know_ that some Romans want to see blood, if they connect my disappearance with his appearance and I can't-”

“It wouldn't be your fault, Jay”, interrupted Leo softly, cupping Jason's face and pulling him into another kiss, though this time quite soft. “You should know it's not your fault. You're here. Besides, after everything you told me about Reyna, I'm sure she will make the right decision. She sounds like someone who uses her brains before acting. So no need to be afraid, right?”

“Right”, nodded Jason slowly and heaved a relieved sigh before resting his forehead against Leo's.

“I love you too”, grinned the Latino, a bit unsure if he should say that now.

The Roman stiffened slightly as he registered what he had said earlier. It had been subconscious, but it still was true. He laughed slightly at that and shook his head, collapsing on the bed. Wrapping his arms around Leo's waist, he pulled his tinkerer close until Leo's head rested on his chest.

“I'm Roman”, murmured the son of Jupiter. “And we work different. It seems you Greeks value monogamy at this camp, but we're more of the open-relationship-kind of way... You know, Roman orgies and stuff. We sort of value that tradition. And I can't deny that I am intrigued by Percy, but just... I'm a teenage boy, okay? I drool over nice asses. That doesn't mean I'd drop you for them. I understand that you want a monogamous relationship and I will respect that.”

“You mean you Romans swing more like Percy does?”, joked Leo with a grin, his mood now better. “Then he's going to really enjoy his time with your Roman friends, isn't he?”

Jason blinked for a second before also laughing hard. “I'd actually say yes. I know some guys who would not object to that ass either. Suddenly I'm not as worried for his safety anymore!”

 

/break\

 

Artemis smiled pleased as she watched her lieutenant returning to their camp. It had been a hard decision for her at first, to allow Thalia that much time at camp, surrounded by men. But Percy was her friend and she knew they needed Jason and Leo both focused for this search to be a success.

“Thalia?”, called the goddess. “We will leave right away. For Canada.”

 

_~*~ The End ~*~_


	3. Two Jokers Acing the King

Title: The Demigod Journal – Persephone's Approval

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; between Lost Hero and Son of Neptune in my 'Lover of Olympus'-verse, thus between Lost Lover and Champion of Venus

PJatO Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, of course. They are all copyright by the old Greeks. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, threesome, fluff, explicit intercourse, anal, hetero

Main Pairing: Stollico

Side Pairings: Frank/Hazel, Chris/Clarisse, Malcolm/Katie, Stolls/Percy, Nico/Percy, Polympians (mentioned)

Percy Jackson Characters: Nico di Angelo, Connor Stoll, Travis Stoll, Chris Rodriguez, , Clarisse la Rue, Katie Gardner, Malcolm Cage, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Persephone

Summary: Shots set between The Lost Lover and The Champion of Venus, telling the stories of how Annabeth and Piper got together while Annabeth tried to comfort Sally and Piper had a rough time adjusting to camp and to Drew, how Jason and Leo coped with having fake memories of a relationship while Jason tried to mend his relationship with his sister and Leo did his best to build the Argo II with his siblings' help and last but not least how Connor and Travis seduced Nico, who kept himself busy traveling from one camp to the other and trying to search for their beloved Percy.

 

**The Demigod Journal**

_ Persephone's Approval _

Two Jokers Acing the King

 

Cards were flying around through the cabin as Travis shuffled them wildly. It was all he was doing these days, really. Christmas had passed and since then, Annabeth seemed awfully busy with her newfound girlfriend and the search for Percy, so talking with her was a rare occasion. Since Jake was very occupied helping Leo with the building of the Argo II, Travis' favorite tinkerer had no time for him either and Travis' favorite healer was too sexually frustrated to not shoot anyone at sight. Never mess with a horny and denied archer. Jason was another topic entirely, Travis still didn't really like the blonde. Clarisse was kind of still angry because Travis had painted the Ares Cabin pink, so they weren't bffs at the moment either. There were actually only three people whose company Travis would enjoy about right now. One was his kidnapped and still missing boyfriend, the other was his brother who was still on a quest to be looking for their shared missing boyfriend and the third being the boy both Stolls would love to call their boyfriend.

But Nico di Angelo was thoroughly dedicating his whole life to this search. Travis frowned worried and flopped down onto the bed with a heavy sigh. He saw Nico slowly fading away and he didn't know how to help. The stupid brat was barely sleeping, barely eating, shadow-traveling too much to be healthy for anyone. If he continued like that, he'd be collapsing soon enough.

“Still pouting about your missing Disney princess?”

“You came to take your revenge on me?”, mumbled Travis uninterested and turned around.

The daughter of Ares rolled her eyes as she entered the room, her boyfriend in tow. Chris gave his big brother a half grin and a shrug, as if to say 'What can I do?', before sitting down on his own bed.

“You okay, Travis?”, asked Chris worried.

“Sure”, shrugged Travis. “As long as you two aren't going to start making out now...”

A smug smirk spread over Clarisse's lips as she tipped her boyfriend's head back and dove right in for a very messy and very passionate kiss. Travis wrinkled his nose and pushed himself off the bed, shuddering slightly. The very last thing he needed at this moment was to watch his baby brother making out with his arch nemesis. Shuddering again, he left the Hermes Cabin. With his hands deep in his pockets, he passed the Poseidon Cabin, staring at it with hollow eyes. He could hear voices inside, knew that it was like the central station for their search for Percy. Nothing he wanted to drop in right now. He wasn't feeling like hearing the same phrases of 'We have no new lead' once again... Instead, Travis decided to drop by and rest a little in Cabin Thirteen. It was cool, which was a blessing considering the rather warm spring they were having. It was empty and silent, something he came to appreciate too these days. And it smelled like _Nico_. Something he really wouldn't have thought he'd ever start appreciating. But somehow the stupid son of Hades had grown to him and to his brother. Nico was handsome, stubborn, arrogant. But he was also hurt, deep within. Travis and Connor knew that the Ghost Prince was afraid. Afraid to be left alone. He had been abandoned by Hades, left alone in the Lotus Hotel. Had been abandoned by his mother as she had died. Had been abandoned by his big sister as she too had died. Now losing Percy, who was the one person the closest to the son of Hades, was like experiencing all those all over again. Travis knew that Nico was afraid that Percy would turn up dead, just like Bianca had. Balling a fist, the son of Hermes entered the cabin and made his way over to Nico's bed. All he wanted to do was hold the stupid Ghost Prince close and tell him that everything would be alright, that they would find their Sea Prince and that they would all get to be happy. But Nico was making it his personal mission to avoid camp. In fact, Travis hadn't seen the idiot since Christmas, which had been three months ago.

Groaning in frustration, he buried his head in his pillow. He couldn't wait for Connor to return, his brother had said the last time they had talked that they would be returning soon. On the one hand, Travis was glad to get his brother back. On the other, it felt like lead was settling in his stomach. Even though no one said it, everyone knew it. Connor, Malcolm and Katie returning from the quest was nothing else but  _giving up_ . Giving up on finding Percy. Not that he could blame them really. Three months had been their limit. There was something so very unsettling about it though. What if this would throw Nico into a complete frenzy? He would work himself to death searching for Percy if he heard about camp 'giving up'. Travis sighed darkly and curled together on the bed, closing his eyes tightly. Hopefully Connor knew how to deal with their stubborn Ghost Prince until they would finally be holding their Sea Prince in their arms again...

 

/break\

 

“Say, are you actually _living_ here now? Because if you are, I would love to be notified so I could, I don't know, start buying groceries for two, or put my bras away. Little things like those.”

Reyna had one elegant eyebrow raised as she was glaring at the son of Hades in front of her. But the Ghost Prince didn't even have the decency to look ashamed or anything. No, if anything, he was looking like a cat. Sprawled all over Reyna's couch like he owned the freaking place. Cats! She rolled her eyes annoyed and patted his head in passing, just to piss him off.

“I'm _waiting_ ”, huffed Nico with a glare, trying to swat her hands away.

“You know your little lover boy won't get here any faster just because you occupy my couch, right?”, huffed the daughter of Bellona annoyed and got to fetch herself a bottle of water, throwing another one over at the Ghost Prince, hitting his shoulder with it, which made her frown. “You're out of it, di Angelo. Your reflexes used to be better than that. And you actually look kind of dead. Even for a child of Pluto. You know, if I wouldn't know better, I would think you're worrying yourself to death. This boy... he must be very special to you.”

“He... is...”, sighed Nico and rubbed his shoulder. “Not just to me though. To many people. Many _gods_. It's important that we find him. He simply has to come here at one point, I know it.”

“It's important, yes, yes. I get that”, sighed Reyna, rolling her eyes irritated and flopping down on the couch next to Nico, turning so she could rest her feet in his lap. “ _Jason_ is important too. And he has been missing for three months now. Do you see me worrying myself to death? No. Because I _know_ there are people here who need me. Who need me at my very best. And I'm sure that there are also people who need you, also at your very best. In fact, I know that.”

As if on queue, someone knocked on the door. Nico groaned annoyed. He knew exactly what was coming. Something Reyna had been up to for some time now. Two laughing, loudly talking people were entering the apartment, walking over to the couch to join them. Nico gave his sister and her nearly boyfriend a strained smile. Reyna loved to use Frank and Hazel for a little guilt trip, to remind him that he was worrying those close to him. And also to annoy him. Because the daughter of Bellona knew exactly that Nico could only endure a certain amount of awkward cuteness between Frank and Hazel before fleeting the scene.

“Brother, you look horrible”, frowned Hazel worried.

There it was. That worried sister look. How much Nico hated it. It reminded him so much of Bianca. It was disturbing how much Hazel reminded him of Bianca sometimes...

“I'm not sleeping all that well. Rey's couch isn't the most comfortable”, grumbled the son of Hades. “If only she would finally put a bed into that freaking guest room.”

“Pluto no”, snorted Reyna with a glare. “I'll never get rid of you then!”

“You two... are an odd couple...”, commented Frank with one raised eyebrow.

“ _Not_ a couple”, spat both Reyna and Nico at the same moment and glared at the Canadian.

The son of Mars gulped and shrunk under their intense gazes, trying to hide behind Hazel, who only gave it a slightly affectionate roll of her golden eyes. Nico heaved a sigh. This was going to be an exhausting afternoon, he could already taste that on his tongue. Not that there was any place better to be, really. The Blofis household always had a bed and a warm meal for him, but Paul and Sally also had those hopeful eyes, silently begging for news about their lost son. He had a home, in the underworld. Of course, but... Persephone loved to screw with his head these days, planting those thoughts about the Stolls into his head, even though he didn't want them there. And Camp Half-Blood? Aside from all those hopeful eyes, there was also Travis. And all those thoughts Persephone had planted into his head were making looking at the tricksters really hard. Jason was another reason to stay away from camp, because his memories were nearly completely returned by now and he would recognize Nico eventually, blowing everything. Most likely landing a blow on Nico too for not telling the truth, for not offering to bring him home again with his shadow-traveling. There would be many reasons for Jason to hit him hard. Better to stay away then.

 

/break\

 

Connor groaned and stretched, popping his joints. Being squeezed into a chariot with Malcolm and Katie for all the way from Canada back to camp was more than just uncomfortable. Especially since Katie kept glaring at him irritated. Maybe he had overdone it with the pranks the last few days.

“I am so freaking glad we're back”, sighed the daughter of Demeter and took a deep breath.

“I just wish we would have been able to return Percy too”, mumbled Malcolm.

The son of Athena wrapped one arm around Katie's waist, pulling her close. The three newly returned demi-gods stood in front of the Poseidon Cabin, knowing that Rachel, Annabeth, Piper and Jason would be inside, discussing possibilities and all. Time to report. They had called often in between of course, but via IM was something different than telling in person.

“So not looking forward to this”, mumbled Connor, stuffing his hands into his pockets frustrated.

“Then how about my lovely half-sister and her consort do this alone and you go and rest?”

The trio frowned and turned to glare at whoever dared to order them around after a three months quest. Upon seeing the Queen of the Underworld, they kind of stared. Travis blinked confused.

“Lady Persephone?”, asked Malcolm unsure.

“Come, come. The two of you will be better at explaining things than the trickster”, smiled the Spring Goddess and walked up to the demi-gods. “And Connor has something... to take care of.”

“I do?” - “He does?” The three teenagers frowned.

“What are you even doing here?”, asked Katie her half-sister suspiciously.

“You two go on, I'll just have a word with young Connor”, smirked Persephone.

“As you wish, my lady”, nodded Malcolm, guiding his girlfriend in before she could start a fight.

Leaving Persephone and Connor alone. The son of Hermes shifted uncomfortable. Being with gods always set him on edge. Especially since Percy disappeared. But she was still smiling.

“Go to the Hades Cabin. Your brother is there and is quite busy sulking”, chuckled Persephone.

“He does so these days”, shrugged Connor, averting his eyes. “Or so Clarisse says...”

“I have something that will lessen both of your sulking though”, smirked the Spring Goddess.

“Whatever may that be?”, snorted the teen ridiculed before catching himself. “Lady Persephone?”

“My stubborn stepson is due to return to camp today”, hummed Persephone with a mischievous grin. “I figure he had enough of Reyna's apartment by now. The girl has done her best to get him out of it, after all. He will give up today, I have that in my guts.”

Connor tried to overhear the fact that Nico was staying at some chick's place. “And?”

“And?”, snorted the goddess, raising one eyebrow. “Do I have to spell it out for you, boy? Go and get him. You have my blessing. And, with my powers as Hades' wife, you also have his. _Go and get him_. That boy is slowly destroying himself. Even my stubborn husband notices. And I told him that you and your brother may be the only ones to get a grip on Nico. So you better _do_ help him, or my dear husband will reserve a very special place in the underworld just for you. Understood?”

Connor stared wide-eyed at her and nodded hastily before breaking into a sprint, a face-splitting grin on his lips. He burst into the Hades Cabin, totally out of breath, his mouth already open to exclaim what he had just been told by Lady Persephone, but his brother was giving him a dark glare, one finger pressed against his lips. Connor raised one eyebrow, staring stunned at Travis, who had a sleeping son of Hades snuggled up to him.

“Hey, bro”, whispered Travis. “If you wake him, I'll whack you. He just collapsed here like ten minutes ago. I don't think he even noticed me. He was out within a second.”

“But we _have_ to wake him!”, exclaimed Connor with a frown and crawled onto the bed.

Nico was grunting slightly as there was suddenly a weight on top of him. Travis glared, ready to protest, pulling the Ghost Prince closer. But then his brother leaned in to kiss Nico, stunning Travis.

“W—What?”, stuttered Travis stunned, blinking and gaping.

Connor was still holding Nico's face, not even a millimeter between their lips. “Lady Persephone is here to get updated on what we found out on our quest. She gave us her blessing. And Lord Hades' blessing. Nico is now officially ours, Trav!”

“Do I get a say in this too?”, mumbled a sleepy voice between them.

“Actually”, drawled Travis and turned Nico's head to kiss him too. “No you don't.”

“Yeah, you're really not good with decisions and all”, agreed Connor and got comfortable.

Nico grunted and struggled half-heartedly against Travis while Connor wrapped his arms around Nico's waist and cuddled up to him. Travis grinned as they parted, burying his nose in Nico's neck.

“You're ours now, end of the story. Now get back to sleep”, ordered Travis.

“Yeah, and once you're well-rested, we'll have a little chat about this Reyna”, glared Connor.

“Reyna? Who's Reyna?”, grunted Travis suspiciously, but Nico was already back asleep.

The brothers sighed and exchanged a look before snuggling up to either side of their Ghost Prince.

 

_~*~ The End ~*~_


End file.
